


The Sword and The Shield

by wordscreatereality



Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: Action/Adventure, Angst, Canon-Typical Violence, F/M, Mystery, Romance, Season 3 rewrite, Torture, olicity - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-05-29
Updated: 2016-06-19
Packaged: 2018-07-10 21:24:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 4
Words: 12,659
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7008718
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wordscreatereality/pseuds/wordscreatereality
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>With Slade defeated and Oliver's life finally getting back on track he decides that he is finally going to tell Felicity the truth about his feelings when his past in Hong Kong collides with a mad man hellbent on fulfilling a prophecy. Will Oliver and his team be able to stay one step ahead of Ra's al Ghul or has Oliver already fallen into his trap?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Hong Kong

**Author's Note:**

> Another hiatus. Another Olicity fic. I've been wanting to rewrite Season 3 since 3x02. This is how I wish it went.
> 
> The Arrow characters and universe do not belong to me.

A violent shudder tore through Oliver's body and he gasped in pain as he involuntarily pulled against his restraints. He had no idea how long he'd been suspended from the ceiling, kneeling, naked, on the cold concrete floor of his pitch black cell with his arms folded behind his back. He was wet from the frequent deluge of ice water that was hosed into his cell. From the excruciating burning in his right arm, he was certain that his shoulder had been dislocated, again. Oliver also suspected that he had a fractured rib or two from the difficulty he was having breathing, but that could be a result of the stress position he'd been left in and not the beating he'd taken before being returned to his cell.

Oliver was uncertain how long it had been since Amanda Waller had rescued him from the North China Sea and brought him to Hong Kong. To be honest, he was uncertain if he was even in Hong Kong since geography had never been his best subject.  He'd taken Waller at her word that they were in Hong Kong, but it didn't take getting chained naked and wet in a cell to realize that Amanda Waller's word wasn't worth shit.

When he'd first awoken after the sinking of the Amazo on top of clean sheets in a room with a roof, a floor and electricity he thought he'd been dreaming or was hallucinating from a lack of oxygen as he drowned in the dark icy waters off of Lian Yu. His last clear memory was of driving an Arrow through Slade Wilson's eye and an explosion that allowed the sea to pull him into her dark embrace. He didn't struggle as the current pulled against him. He was tired and was eager to stop fighting and to finally let go. Death would be much easier than to face the memories of watching his father, Yao Fei, Shado, Slade and Sara die. He'd been responsible for all of their deaths and didn't deserve to live. His second conscious thought upon waking in Hong Kong was of Sara, once again, being torn from him and sucked into the darkness. If he was alive and not dying, maybe whoever saved him had also saved her.

How naive he'd been to think that Amanda Waller would be his salvation. When he first saw the impeccably dressed woman who smelled of fresh linen and citrus, she had strangely reminded him of his mother and he'd been relieved. Oliver believed that, finally, after two horrifying years he'd finally be reunited with his friends and family. He couldn't have been more wrong. Less than a day after meeting Waller, he'd been beaten and tortured. Any illusions about life being fair disappeared the first time she had him water boarded. He was left with a gaping hole where hope had once lived. Every cruel blow, knife strike, sword slash, arrow and bullet wound inflicted upon him by Yao Fei, Wintergreen, Fryers, Ivo and Slade paled in comparison to Waller and her endless imagination for cruelty and depravity.

Oliver had nine escape attempts under his belt before Waller had added isolation and stress restraints to her repertoire. He'd once feared physical pain, but he'd been more than willing to risk it if it meant a chance at freedom. During his last attempt, he'd gotten as close as logging into his email account and starting a message to his mom before he'd been recaptured by Amanda's goons. Waller had been furious when he'd regained consciousness, tied to a chair, in a room covered in plastic sheeting. He knew she was going to make him bleed, a lot, for his escape attempt. Oliver no longer feared death, but longed for it like a lover separated from his true love. He'd expected to be beaten, killed even, but his heart began to beat faster when Waller said that her current methods weren't working and he'd forced her to try something new.

The sound of metal groaning filled Oliver with dread. He braced himself for another onslaught of cold water. Instead, the rope tying him to the ceiling went slack and Oliver collapsed onto the cold cement floor. He didn't have the energy to scream as the pain in his arm blinded him to his surroundings. As he began to drift into unconsciousness, he registered the presence of someone else in the cell with him.

A gentle hand touched his shoulder and the back of his neck. "Oliver, can you hear me?" A man asked in accented English. When Oliver groaned the man continued. "My name is Maseo Yamashiro and I am now your handler. Soon, your training will begin, but first, you have a fever and your shoulder is dislocated." Something cold swiped against Oliver's thigh and it was followed by a pinch. He could feel something burn as it entered his bloodstream. "That is for your fever and this," Oliver felt another pinch, "is for the pain." Maseo rolled Oliver onto his back and manipulated his right arm. "This will hurt." Before Oliver could react, Maseo tugged on his arm and his shoulder popped back into place. Oliver wanted him to let him die, but he knew that Waller had plans for him. He wondered if praying for death was a kind of hope and took some solace in knowing that his body couldn't hold out forever. "I will hope for death," he thought to himself as the pain medicine finally pulled him under.


	2. Summer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Life goes on after Slade Wilson's capture and Oliver's confession.

VVVVV

Even after being back home for two years, Oliver still rose with the sun. Years on Lian Yu had trained his body to wake with the first hint of light and to sleep with one eye open. Oliver learned to fall asleep anywhere for fifteen minutes at a time. It was the only way to stay alive when he was the prey. Slade had kept him alive on the island by watching his back and teaching him how to protect himself and for years, Oliver had been grateful, but the same man he'd trusted with his life had taken everything away. Oliver's mom was dead, his company was lost and Thea had run away. Now his dreams were haunted by his former friend and had started to bleed into his time in Hong Kong with Waller and the Yamashiros. On a nightly basis, his subconscious meted out death to those he loved at either the hands of his enemies or by his own. He could feel the cold fingers of despair clutching at his heart as he stared into the Foundry's darkness when he remembered, he hadn't lost everything. Slade hadn't taken Felicity from him. She was still there, standing by his side and believing in him. Oliver sat up, his feet on the floor beside the bed Felicity had bought him and he checked his watch. It was six in the morning and he wasn't supposed to meet Felicity for another two hours. He rubbed his head as he tried to think of how to fill the time. His eyes moved from the mats to the salmon ladder, but neither held any appeal. He needed to get out of the basement. He needed to be in the sun and fresh air. Oliver got out of bed and grabbed some clothes from the racks Felicity had set up. He would grab a shower and then he'd buy her bagels. She couldn't be mad at him if he showed up with bagels, even if he was early.

One hour later he stood in front of her door knocking. It took her three minutes, but she finally shuffled her way to the front door, muttering the whole time, "Oliver Queen, you do know the difference between seven and eight, don't you?" She moved back into her apartment so he could step inside.

He couldn't keep himself from grinning, "Most of my professors would be impressed that I showed up on time for an eight am class."

She peered up at him through squinting eyes, "You do realize that you only finished with my evening services four hours ago?"

Oliver gulped as he finally took in her appearance. Her hair was sleep tousled and he wanted nothing more than to run his fingers through it as he pulled her in for a kiss and take her back to bed. Her cheeks were flushed and he knew that her unintended innuendo was hitting her as hard as it was hitting him. The dance they'd been doing all summer might just be the death of him.

His confession to her in the mansion had been made to convince Slade to take Felicity, but Oliver could no longer deny that he actually meant it and based on Felicity's reaction, she might feel the same way. They both chickened out on Lian Yu, but they'd been playing with fire all summer. Ever since she'd been kidnapped by Clinton Hogue it had become harder for him to deny his feelings and to keep them bottled up. He knew that the careful flirting they'd always shared had been replaced with something more daring. He saw the looks Dig and Roy shot one another when they didn't think he was looking. His head told him to step back and to keep a firm hold on their platonic relationship, but everyday his head lost more and more ground to his heart. Why couldn't he get what his heart wanted? For once in seven years he wanted something beyond merely surviving. He wanted Felicity. He cleared his throat to make sure it wouldn't crack before he spoke.

Felicity stopped him before he could speak, "I will not apologize for anything that comes out of my mouth before I've showered or had a cup of coffee."

He placed a hand on her shoulder and steered them towards the kitchen. "How about, I make coffee and work on breakfast while you shower?" he lowered his hand to the small of her back and gave her a gentle push towards the bathroom.

"Four hours of sleep, Oliver. It better be a big pot of coffee," she closed the bathroom door behind her.

He waited for the shower to turn on before he got to work in her kitchen. After five months of being a regular visitor, he knew her kitchen better than she did. He smiled as he heard Felicity begin to sing to herself. As he measured the coffee into the filter he couldn't help but hum along with her.

01101100 01101001 01100111 01101000 01110100 00001010

The steam from her shower rushed ahead of her into the hallway when she opened the bathroom door. The smell of freshly brewed coffee made her sigh in relief. She checked to make sure her pink robe was cinched tightly around her waist and that her damp hair wasn't a mess of wild curls before she left the bathroom for her bedroom. She'd already made enough of a scene with Oliver that morning, she didn't need to add flashing him to her list of embarrassing things. It had been awhile since she'd been flustered by her partner, but he happened to wake her from a particularly vivid, very non-platonic dream and she was out of sorts when she opened her front door. From the look on his face, he had a pretty good idea what she'd been dreaming about before he knocked on her door. One day, and she hoped it was soon, her brain would stop short circuiting around him.

"Hey," Oliver said gently with a hint of smile in his voice.

She turned, brushing a loose curl behind her ear and praying her cheeks weren't as pink as her robe, "Give me five minutes."

"Sure," he said as he handed her an oversized mug of coffee. "Sugar, no milk."

Felicity took the offered mug and tried to ignore the tingling that radiated out from where his fingers brushed against hers. From his slight intake of breath, she was confident he felt it too, "Thank you." She shut her bedroom door, but then popped her head back out, "Two minutes."

She could hear Oliver chuckling through her closed door when he said, "Five minutes is fine. Breakfast is ready whenever you are."

She sank onto her bed and took a generous sip of coffee with just the right amount of sugar. She tried to figure out how she started to live a life where Oliver Queen knew how she took her coffee and arrived at her front door at the crack of dawn with breakfast. She could count on one hand the number of times Oliver had been to her apartment in the two years that she knew him - well, at least until five months ago. Now it seemed he was at her apartment once a day.

Their summer had been spent restoring the Foundry, eliminating organized crime and preparing Oliver to take back Queen Consolidated. Almost all of their spare time had been spent in one another's company. With Thea out of town and Felicity's under employment, they both had a lot of free time that they somehow always found an excuse to fill with each other. When they weren't studying 10ks, they were taking walks in parks, going for rides on Oliver's motorcycle or just hanging out at her place watching television.

Oliver was living in the Foundry as some kind of penance for his mom's death. He insisted it was because he couldn't afford to rent an apartment, but Felicity knew he was struggling to forgive himself for Slade. She was going to give him until Dig's baby was born before she broke out her loud voice and insisted he end his basement exile. Until then, she'd let him spend as much time with her as he wanted outside of their Arrow headquarters.

She stood in front of her closet and tried to decide what to wear. She didn't want to make it look like she was trying to look good for his benefit, they were supposed to be studying, but she also didn't want to look like she was about to binge on a pint of ice cream. "Get a grip. It's just Oliver," she reminded herself as she grabbed a loose fitting pair of cotton shorts and a fitted MIT t-shirt.

She made the short walk to her living room and was met with the sight of a sleeping Oliver. His head rested against the back of her sofa and she watched his folded arms rise and fall with his chest. He probably had gotten less sleep than she did, but she wasn't feeling overly kind. He could take a nap while she was at work. "I'm starving. What's for breakfast?" She asked as she flopped down next to him on the sofa, careful not to spill any of her coffee.

Oliver opened one eye to look at her before closing it again. "Bagels, cream cheese, lox," he started.

"Capers?" Felicity asked with her eyes wide and accusing.

Oliver sat up and looked offended, "Of course, capers, and tomatoes and red onions."

She laughed, "Don't make that face. It isn't like you haven't forgotten."

"Once, Felicity. Once, I forgot the capers." He rose from the sofa and offered her his hand, "Besides, any self-respecting pantry should have capers."

She allowed Oliver to pull her to her feet. She couldn't help but roll her eyes, "Why do I need a well-stocked pantry? I live entirely on take-out, licorice and Cheetos."

It was Oliver's turn to roll his eyes. He raised their joined hands as he inspected her fingers, "I'm surprised they aren't permanently stained traffic cone orange." He released her hand as they entered the kitchen.

Two plates were prepared on the counter. Felicity sighed as she took in the two everything bagels with a smear of cream cheese and a generous helping of lox, tomato, onion and capers. Nothing said platonic like an everything bagel with lox and onions. They might as well be gnawing on heads of garlic for breakfast. She reached to take a half a bagel from one of the plates when Oliver snatched the plate away. "Such a tease," had escaped her lips before her filter had a chance to engage. She took another gulp of her coffee to prevent herself from saying anything else.

Oliver had the grace to pretend like he hadn't heard her, "You're eating at the table, not over the kitchen sink."

She eagerly followed him back into the living room, "For a guy who lives in the basement of an abandoned building, I feel like there should be a lot less judging coming my way."

Oliver raised a lone brow as he placed their plates on the table, "What time does your shift start today?"

Felicity hung her head and pretended to cry as she sank into her chair, "My shift in hell is from two to ten today."

"I'm sorry," Oliver said as he sat down.

Felicity looked up. The look of guilt upon his face could've been used to illustrate its dictionary definition, "Hey. It's not your fault."

"What isn't?" he asked bitterly. "Signing away my company? Alienating my sister so we lost all of our assets? Getting you fired from QC? Getting you fired from Kord Industries? I think it's safe to say that it's my fault you're stuck in this crappy job."

Felicity took a deep breath as she thought to herself, _Oliver having a guilt trip, today must be a day that ends in 'y'_. "None of that is your fault," she said to Oliver and he silently replied with an incredulous look. "Okay, so you signed away your family's company to the dragon lady, but you were worried about Thea and you trusted Isabel." She still couldn't understand any of Oliver's choices when it came to Isabel, but he felt badly enough without her piling on. Not for the first time, she wished she'd hit Isabel twice with the van the night of the siege. "As for Kord Industries, let's be honest, no one but you would've tolerated an employee who gave as many excuses as me for being late or needing to leave early."

"You wouldn't have needed those excuses if it weren't for me," Oliver's fingers picked at his bagel.

"Nah uh," she said shaking her head. "Arrow business is just as important to me as it is to you. I chose to put it ahead of my job at Kord. Even if I hadn't been taken by Clinton Hogue, they were going to fire me, sooner rather than later."

Oliver's eyes were wide and looked haunted. "Also my fault."

She reached across the table and rested her hand on his forearm. "Yeah, and maybe I shouldn't have led with, bitch with wi-fi, or donated his entire life's savings to charity."

Oliver nodded as a smile lit up his face, "Best not to antagonize the bad guys."

"I'll try to remember that for next time," she took a bite of her bagel.

"I'm going to do my best to make sure there is never a next time," Oliver said solemnly.

"You won't get any arguments from me," she reached towards the opposite end of the table and pulled the study materials she'd prepared towards them.

Oliver placed his hand over hers and squeezed, "Let's eat first."

ldl

Laurel impatiently tapped her foot as she craned her neck to see what the delay was. Despite being 5'10" in her three inch heels, she couldn't make out what was happening at the front of the line. She was absolutely desperate for an espresso and only had forty-five minutes before she had to be in court. She anxiously glanced at her phone, hoping an email from Sara, that was already three days past due, would miraculously appear.

"It's best you can't see," a deep voice said from behind her.

"Excuse me?" Laurel asked looking up from her phone. She was pleasantly surprised to see a man in his early thirties with light blue eyes and dark wavy hair smiling at her. He was well over six feet tall and dressed in an expensively tailored black suit. There was something familiar about him, but she couldn't place him.

He indicated the front of the line with his chin, "Some hipster in skinny jeans with a man bun and a beard is trying out his game on the poor woman at the register. It doesn't appear to be working for him."

Laurel sighed, "I wish he'd try after the rest of us get to work on time - with our coffee." The man smiled and Laurel felt her chest squeeze. His grin reminded her of Tommy. Maybe that's why he seemed familiar to her.

His brow furrowed as his eyes roamed her face, "This might sound strange, but, are you Laurel Lance?"

She cocked her head to the side as she tried to remember where she knew him from. "I am," she said cautiously.

"William Perkins," he extended his hand, "I was a year ahead of you at Stanford."

Laurel smiled as she was finally able to place him within the context of Stanford. She took his hand and shook it, "Of course, Bill. I remember you. Professor Friedman's class on Ethics. Are you living in Starling now?"

"Yes. I just moved last week. Today's my first day at Hartman and Schiff."

"Hartman and Schiff," Laurel was impressed. They were the best criminal defense firm in the city and arguably the best in the country. "They're a pretty good firm, I guess," she teased.

He shrugged modestly, "How about you?"

"I'm with the District Attorney's Office," she said with pride.

"I guess being a cop's daughter would keep you from sitting on my side of the courtroom," a wry grin spread across his face.

Laurel laughed, "My dad believes that everyone deserves representation, just as long as,"

"The defense attorney isn't his daughter," Bill finished her sentence with a wink.

"Exactly." A throat clearing brought Laurel's attention to the young woman behind the register. She placed her order and stepped aside to wait for her double espresso.

Less than a minute later, Bill approached her with his cup of coffee already in hand, "I hope you don't think I'm being too forward, but I'd love to take you to dinner."

For a moment Laurel felt like the young, successful, carefree woman she was supposed to be and she was immediately at a loss for words, "Um."

Bill took a step back from her, "Of course, you're seeing someone. I was being presumptuous."

She took a step forward and rested her hand on his arm. "No, I'm not seeing anyone, it's just, I," Laurel dropped her hand and decided to turn him down when she heard Tommy's voice, _Come on counselor, live a little._ "I would love to go to dinner with you," she slid her hand into her jacket pocket and retrieved a business card.

Bill took the card with a smile, "Great. I'll give you a call later."

She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and smiled, "I'm looking forward to it."

-+-

Being a billionaire had its perks. To be honest, being a billionaire had lots of perks, but very few of them held any appeal for Ray Palmer. He had no interest in using his wealth to pick up women for casual one night stands, vacation on private islands, buy luxurious homes in cities around the world or to buy fancy cars. What interested Ray were things that saved him time and prevented him from wasting time that could be better spent conducting research or just thinking. Private jets and helicopters were status symbols for sure, but Ray only used them because they kept him out of endless security lines and traffic jams. He also enjoyed spending money acquiring cutting edge companies and technology, which really went without saying when you were the CEO of Palmer Technologies. The thing that Ray spent money on without hesitation and gave him the most pleasure was people. Whether it was donating money to charity or investing in talented and intelligent individuals, Ray loved spending money on people. Finding people with unique talent and innovative ideas was his favorite pursuit. He was willing to do whatever it took and spend whatever it cost to get the talent his company needed to innovate and stay the best.

Ray studied the contents of the portfolio in front of him. He was surrounded by his board, his lawyers and several investment bankers who were debating the finer points of his interest in purchasing the struggling Queen Consolidated. He wasn't paying any attention to the discussion they were having since his mind was already made up. He was willing to pay whatever QC's board and shareholders asked for the purchase of the outstanding shares. He'd been following QC's government contracts for years and was anxious to get his hands on the O.M.A.C. files. In his mind, O.M.A.C. was worth whatever amount requested, but he wouldn't spook his own board by saying so. As confident as he was about O.M.A.C., it was the report in front of him that was giving him pause. Felicity Smoak was going to be a challenge. When he first decided to purchase Queen Consolidated, he did so for two reasons, O.M.A.C. and Felicity Smoak. It wasn't until his research team provided him with their initial analysis on QC's talent that he learned that Felicity had been fired from the company six months earlier. He sent the team back out to do additional research on Felicity and was confounded by their report. He couldn't understand how a woman who had graduated with two master’s degrees and with honors from MIT at the tender age of twenty and who had an IQ of 158 could've spent her time since graduating working at an IT help desk and as the administrative assistant to an incompetent CEO before she was fired for performance issues at Kord Industries. Her current position as a sales associate at Tech Village was downright baffling. Something didn't add up about Felicity Smoak and Ray Palmer was determined to find out what it was. Mysteries were meant to be solved and Felicity Smoak was a mystery.

"Enough," he said firmly as he looked up from his file on Felicity. "I appreciate everyone's due diligence on this matter, but my mind is made up. Queen Consolidated will be part of Palmer Technologies by this time next week or I will be finding a replacement for each and every one of you." Ray looked around the room as everyone nodded their heads. He smiled, "Excellent. That will be all." He returned to studying Felicity's file as everyone left the room. A plan to acquire Felicity Smoak was starting to form.

vvvvv

The heavy base beat pulsed through his feet and thrummed behind his eyes. Roy was wound way too tightly to be at a crowded club. His eyes were dry and his lids felt heavy. He couldn't remember the last time he'd gotten a decent night's sleep - unless he counted the weeks he was given pit viper venom. Ever since Oliver administered the Mirakuru cure and Thea left him, he'd been plagued by nightmares he couldn't remember but still left him unsettled and on edge. A club was the last place he should be, but he was the logical choice. Oliver was too famous, Dig was too old and Felicity was, well, too Felicity. Of course, being at a club was far more preferable than being stuck in the foundry watching Oliver and Felicity moon over each other. His mentor had turned into a lovesick puppy and had spent the past five months awkwardly flirting with his bespectacled partner. Roy found it hard to believe that Oliver ever had game. If the two of them didn't do something about their feelings soon he was going to arrow the both of them.

There was a new strain of Vertigo on the streets and circulating through the clubs. The new drug was sending the youth of Starling to the hospital in greater numbers than the time the city's flu vaccine supply was tainted with Vertigo. The latest version caused hallucinations and spikes in adrenalin. Users were either prone to violence towards others or self-harm. Roy was looking to score some V so Felicity could do some analysis on the drug and he could place a tracer on the dealer in the hopes it would lead them to the supplier.

"Any luck, Abercrombie?" Sin held out a beer to him.

He took a swing and could feel a little tension leave his shoulders. The one bright spot of his summer had been his friendship with Sin. She'd kept him from completely wallowing in self-pity when Thea had broken up with him. "I've been able to score everything but V." Roy had tagged at least ten guys who were selling everything from pot to heroin, but no one had any V. Once he left the club, he was going to be leaving the SCPD _packages_ all over the Glades.

Sin grinned and held up a little bag with three green and purple pills, "You've lost your edge."

Roy snatched the bag out of Sin's hand and shoved it into his back pocket, "Who'd you score it off of?"

She placed a hand on his shoulder and redirected his attention to the dance floor, "See the red head in the sequins and no bra?" Roy nodded. "She's your friendly neighborhood Vertigo dealer."

Roy rolled his eyes. The girl didn't look old enough to be in the club. She was probably a college student dealing on the side to pay for fancy shoes and handbags. Maybe it wasn't as bad as they feared. If the supplier was using college kids to deal and not street toughs, the supplier might be cooking the stuff up in a Starling University chemistry lab and would be easy to capture. He rolled his head in an attempt to relax and look like a guy out looking to have fun, "I guess I'll go ask her to dance."

"Careful," Sin shouted into his ear, "red over there is a bit handsy." She winked at him as she gave his bottom a pinch.

"We're out of here in five," Roy promised. He knew Sin wanted to be at this club less than he did. "Wait for me by the door."

"Good, you'll still have time to buy me the burger you owe me for coming with you tonight," she said as she took back her beer.

Roy began to push through the crowd towards the red head. He was going to confirm she was dealing, get a tracker on her and then hit the streets for some scumbag clean-up. He really hoped one of these guys put up a fight because he really wanted to hit someone.

Ten minutes later he was walking out of the club with his arm slung over Sin's shoulder. The red head had been dealing V and it had been easy enough to get a tracker on her dress. He sent Felicity a text so she could start tracking their targets and let Oliver and Dig know that they would be hunting tonight. Felicity responded to his text almost immediately and Roy laughed. Felicity wanted to know how much of their discretionary funds had been spent. Ever since Oliver lost his fortune, Felicity had become the team book keeper. It made sense, since she was almost single handedly funding the team with her salary and whatever money Oliver had received from his mom's life insurance. He sent her a text to tell her that the folks he did business with didn't provide itemized receipts.

"What's so funny?" Sin asked as she shoved him playfully.

In addition to wanting to know how much V cost the team, Felicity had also wanted him to bring her food, "Looks like I'm buying dinner for two women tonight."

Sin pretended to be offended. "Stepping out on me Harper?"

Roy wrinkled his nose. Felicity was like a sister and even if she weren't, there was no way he'd be stupid enough to go after the woman Oliver was madly in love with.

Sin punched Roy in the arm."One day, you're going to introduce me to this mystery woman who also helps out the Arrow. She's got to be a total badass."

"She’s a total badass, but it’s never going to happen," Roy grumbled. Not only would Roy never give up anyone on the team, the idea of Sin and Felicity becoming friends was as terrifying as Thea and Sin's unlikely friendship. The distant rumble of thunder did nothing to improve his mood. Patrolling in wet leather was a miserable way to spend the evening, "Come on, let's eat before the rain starts."

 

<o>

The dark figure dissolved into the shadows of an alley. The smell of urine and rotting garbage permeated the air. Silent footfalls gracefully fell upon the litter strewn pavement as the assassin made her way to the entry of her safe house. Sara had been on League business but now she was acting on behalf of her beloved, the Daughter of the Demon. As soon as Ra's realized that he'd been betrayed he would begin to hunt for her.

Once Nyssa and Sara understood what Ra's had planned they decided to act. They were both willing to lose their own lives rather than permit Nyssa's father to execute his plan to rain chaos and destruction upon the people Sara loved. Sara had surrendered her freedom and committed herself to a life of meting out death in order to protect her family, friends and the city she would always call home. She refused to allow her sacrifice to be in vain. Yes, the League of Assassins was made up of killers, but there was a code of honor. Ra's was betraying that code and was showing signs of madness. He needed to be removed from power before the leaders of the world could no longer turn a blind eye to the League. Nyssa was going to lead a coup and Sara was going to be right by her side when she ended her father.

Sara used her key to open a heavy metal door and she closed it quietly behind her. She climbed a dirty staircase to the top floor and entered a small studio apartment. The furnishings were sparse, but the room was clean, if a bit dusty from disuse. She quickly assessed that she was alone and the room was secure. She dropped her knapsack onto the bed and went straight to the kitchen. As promised, the cupboards were filled with MREs. She selected a spaghetti bolognese and sat cross-legged on the bed to eat her meal.

Ollie had told her about his safe house in Coast City during the brief time they'd resumed their physical relationship. Neither of them were good sleepers and both were plagued by nightmares. Nights can be long and you can only spend so much of it screwing, especially if your lover is male, so they filled the silence with whispered confessions. In the darkness they would share snippets of what had happened to them after they were separated on the Amazo. It was freeing to tell someone the truth, knowing they wouldn't judge or show pity. Oliver had shared stories about Hong Kong and his forced return to Lian Yu and Sara didn't judge except when he shared that he'd made it home to the United States and went no further than Coast City. She’d been forced to bite her tongue as he told her of his first foray into vigilantism. He'd come so close to making it home, but had chosen self-imposed exile instead of a family reunion. She understood self-loathing. She could write a book about it, but she was pretty sure that she would've gone home given the chance, even after her first year in the League. Hong Kong had turned Ollie into a ruthless killer, but his humanity hadn't been stripped from him yet. She knew it was wrong for her to judge him. After the Amazo, she herself had waited four years to return home and even then had reluctantly revealed herself to her family, but she was different from Ollie. He had a decency about him and cared about others, even after Hong Kong. The League had stripped most of that away from her. It was only after returning to Starling and being reunited with her family and Ollie that she remembered the person who wanted to be a doctor and to save people. Now was her chance.

Ollie had purchased the safe house under the name Tommy Jones when he publicly returned to Starling City. He believed he might need it if his identity was compromised before he'd finished completing his father's mission. After Sara had rejoined the League he'd pressed two keys into her hand and told her she should consider them her safe places if she ever needed to run.

Sara shifted on the bed to remove her burner phone from her back pocket. She sent Laurel a text to let her know that she was safe and would see her again soon. After she finished her meal, she pulled a dagger from her bag. Her fingers traced the delicate handle and blade. It was too dangerous to continue carrying around. Too many people were looking for it and she couldn't allow it to fall into the wrong hands. She needed to find a hiding place for it until she was able to get it to Felicity or her geeky friends at STAR Labs. She then pulled a small notebook out of her bag and flopped backwards onto the bed. She held the notebook against her chest and closed her eyes. Sara wasn't sure what she was going to do about her other problem. Al-Sahir was still alive and he had Thea. As her eyes grew heavier and she could feel sleep pulling her under she decided that tomorrow, she'd hide the dagger and warn Ollie. She felt more at ease with her decision. She'd go to Starling, hide the dagger, talk to Ollie and they'd decide together what to do next.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading. All comments and kudos are welcomed and appreciated.


	3. Take Aim

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oliver continues his ARGUS training under Maseo's guidance.

The sound of the rifle firing close to his ear made Oliver jump. It was all he could do to keep himself from removing his blindfold. "Good," Maseo praised.

The sound of multiple pieces of metal hitting the table in front of him made Oliver sigh.

"Again. Still not fast enough," his instructor barked.

Oliver reached out and blindly felt along the table, identifying pieces of the rifle that needed to be assembled. He had no idea how long he'd spent standing in front of the table assembling rifles. It felt like hours.

It had been three weeks since Maseo had taken him from isolation. In that time, he hadn't been beaten once. He'd been given his own room with a bed that had clean sheets and a warm blanket and finally was able to get eight hours of uninterrupted sleep a night. For the first time since the Gambit sank, he was getting three hot meals a day. Every day he was examined by a doctor and every day the doctor told Maseo, "Not yet." Oliver wasn't sure what they were waiting for, but, whatever it was, he was sure he wasn't going to like it. Today the doctor shrugged his shoulders and told Maseo, "Okay."

Maseo had spent the past two weeks training Oliver to use firearms of all types. His proficiency with a bow and arrow had translated into him being an excellent marksman. Once Oliver was able to familiarize himself with a gun's recoil he was able to hit the bullseye every time. Maseo began to move the targets further and further away and Oliver still kept hitting the bullseye. Satisfied that Oliver could hit stationary targets, Maseo began to use moving targets and Oliver was equally adept at hitting them too. Maseo moved on to weapon assembly. Today's lesson was testing Oliver's ability to put a rifle together without the use of his eyes. Maseo, unlike Slade, was a patient, if aloof, teacher. Oliver wanted to like Maseo, but he knew that anyone who worked for Amanda Waller was not to be trusted.

Oliver's fingers quickly identified and assembled the parts. He placed the completed rifle onto the table. Maseo pulled the blindfold from Oliver's eyes before picking up the rifle. He inserted one round into the gun and stepped up to the firing range. He rested the butt of the gun against his shoulder and fired. It was a perfect shot. "Good."

Maseo returned the gun to the table and quickly spun into Oliver. He threw a punch that Oliver was able to deflect. Oliver stepped easily into the fighting stance Slade had drilled into him, but Maseo relaxed and stepped back. "Your shoulder. Any pain?"

Oliver rotated both of his shoulders. The time spent hanging from the ceiling of his cell had done a number on them. Today, for the first time in months, his shoulders didn't burn. "No."

"Your ribs?" Maseo asked.

"Tender, but not painful." Oliver said truthfully.

Maseo folded his arms against his chest and considered Oliver. "Tomorrow, we will begin. Waller will be back soon and we must show progress or it will be back to your cell."

Oliver nodded. He would do whatever Maseo wanted as long as he didn't have to return to that cell.

 

Two months passed quickly. In that time, he'd been trained on firearms, practiced martial arts and had been made to stay still for ten hours at a time. Any movement would result in the clock starting over. He was subjected to extremes of temperature, biting vermin and noise as he was forced to remain unmoving. After a month, Oliver had learned to disassociate himself from his physical body. Discomfort, pain, boredom were suppressed even as he remained aware of his surroundings.

When he wasn't being required to be still, Maseo was training him to pick pockets as well as locks. They would wander in the crowded Hong Kong markets in order for Maseo to pick targets and for Oliver to test his skills. Even in a city as international as Hong Kong, it was hard for a 6'2" blue-eyed American to blend in. In the beginning everyone would take notice of him, but lately he'd felt almost invisible.

He wasn't sure, but he thought that it was his confidence in his ability to disappear in plain sight that was the reason for him dangling naked from the ceiling in his old cell. Over confidence had always been a weakness before the Gambit and three years of depravation hadn’t changed him.

Oliver had been following a target in the market when he saw his opportunity to give Maseo the slip. It didn't take five minutes for Oliver to be brought down by a group of agents. As Oliver was brought to his feet, Maseo gave him a look that was both disappointed and apologetic.

As soon as they'd returned to the facility, Oliver had been stripped naked and beaten. A masked man had used a knife to open the scars left behind by Billy Wintergreen. He'd been dragged, half-conscious and bleeding to his old cell where he was now hanging by his wrists. He did his best to use the training Maseo had given him to disassociate from the pain in order to stay awake. As long as Oliver was able to remain conscious and on his feet, he was able to keep the pressure off of his arms, but as soon as his legs gave out, his wrists were forced to carry his weight.

His cell door opened and Oliver peered at an immaculate Amanda Waller through his one eye that wasn't completely swollen shut. She stepped up to him, his naked flesh separated from her by barely a hair's width. Her eyes never drifted from his face and her manner didn't indicate that she was addressing a man hanging from a ceiling as naked as the day he was born. "Mr. Queen. I expected more from you. Why would you run? Haven't we been taking good care of you?" she asked dispassionately.

"Fuck you," Oliver spat out. "I want to go home."

She didn’t flinch at his outburst. "Dead men don't get to go home," Amanda said stepping away from him.

"I'm not dead," Oliver screamed.

"Yes, Mr. Queen, you are," she said with her back to him. As she stepped out of his cell she addressed someone Oliver couldn't see, "This isn't working. Start again."

"I'm not dead," Oliver screamed again. "I'm not dead." He began to sob, "I'm not dead. I'm not dead."

The vent above Oliver opened and a torrent of ice cold water dropped onto him. He screamed as his feet slipped from beneath him and all of his weight was transferred to his arms and his shoulder was wrenched from its socket.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading. All comments and kudos are welcomed and appreciated.


	4. The Calm

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oliver finally asks Felicity out on a date.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We are back in Starling this week.

01101100 01101001 01100111 01101000 01110100 00001010

"Are those gunshots?" Felicity asked as she looked up from her monitors. "Who is getting shot at?" She began to tile through the camera feeds from the area where Oliver, Dig and Roy were taking down another Starling City lowlife. They'd had a successful summer of eliminating members of different organized crime families. It had reminded her of her first year on the team as they systematically crossed names off a list. It felt good to be making a difference in the lives of every day citizens who no longer had to fear leaving their homes after the sun went down. What didn't feel good were how many of the criminals remaining were still armed to the teeth and insisted on shooting at her guys. She checked the team's location. Roy and Dig were with the semi they'd disabled and were securing its illegal shipment of guns. Oliver was on the move in pursuit of the driver. Dollars to donuts, Oliver was the one being shot at. Another burst of gunfire had her calling out, "Oliver?"

"I'm okay," Oliver's breathing was even, "in pursuit."

She could hear his steady footfall echoing off the wet alley walls. She muted her channel to Oliver, "Dig, Oliver is taking fire."

"Roger. What's his six?" John asked calmly.

"Heading north through the alley between Davis and Elmira."

"On my way."

"Felicity, I've secured the truck. Call it in," Roy informed her. "I'll keep eyes on until the SCPD arrives."

Before she could acknowledge Roy, Oliver's voice was speaking softly in her ear, "You can add the location of the driver. He's all wrapped up and waiting for pick-up."

She called in the bust to 911 and waited for confirmation that dispatch had deployed a response team. Felicity opened all her channels, "Come home. SCPD is two blocks out."

"Is it just us?" Oliver asked.

She tapped a few keys. "It is now," Felicity said with a smile.

"It's a beautiful sunrise," Oliver's motorcycle roared to life.

"I wouldn't know. You insist that our super, not so secret, lair be window free," she teased. "I can't remember the last sunrise I saw. "It had to be the fall of 2012." His soft chuckle in her ear made her skin erupt in goosebumps.

"I wish you were on the back of my bike. I'd take you to breakfast down by the bay so we could watch the sunrise," he made no attempt to cover the huskiness in his voice.

Felicity swallowed heavily. Oliver was becoming more brazen in his flirtations with her, but he'd yet to come out with anything straight forward like an invitation to join him on a date. "That would be a sight. The Arrow showing up for breakfast and ordering pancakes with some random blonde."

"You're not some random blonde," Oliver said seriously. "You're my blonde," he practically stuttered, "my girl."

Felicity was at a loss for words, she was the one normally tripping over her tongue, "Are you sure the bad guy didn't hit you on the head?"

He laughed. "I'm sure, no head trauma."

"Good. Tell me about the sunrise," she knew her voice sounded flirty, but she couldn't bring herself to care.

Oliver was silent but the Ducati hummed in her ear. "It's like the sky is blushing." She smiled as she imagined him with a crinkled brow as he tried to find the right words to describe what she'd asked. "It started with just a hint of pink before the sun even broke the horizon, but the further it rises the more the pink deepens." He took a deep breath, "It looks like it is going to be a good day."

Felicity knew he wasn't just talking about the weather. Oliver was starting to see that life was giving him more good days than bad. Lately, her normally brooding hero was downright sunny, "Sounds beautiful."

"It is, but not as beautiful as other things," Oliver's voice was barely above a whisper. He cleared his throat and his tone was back to business, "Two minutes out."

Felicity heard his comm click off. She rose from her chair and moved to their large touch screen display. She brought up the board she'd created to display all of the faces of the criminals they'd chosen to target that summer. There were now more faces with big red crosses through them than not. Felicity smiled. Oliver was right. It was going to be a good day.

 

VVVVV

Oliver felt like he was floating as his boots rang out against the metal stairs. Another of Starling City’s worst citizens was off the street as was the large shipment of guns. He finally felt like he was making a difference in the city and all of his hard work and sacrifice was starting to pay off.

“We keep this up,” Dig was looking at Felicity’s board, “there won’t be anyone left for us to pick up.”

“Word on the street is that Starling is no longer a place criminals want to set up shop,” Roy said with a grin. “If we’re not catching them, they’re running scared.”

After Slade and the siege, the team had taken a few weeks to heal from their injuries. When they returned to the foundry and started to get everything back into working order the four of them had discussed what they should do next. Oliver didn’t want to just be patrolling the streets for trouble, he wanted to be proactive. Dig had been the one to suggest that they return to their days of taking out a list of targets. Oliver had gone to Laurel and asked her to put together a wish list of criminals the DA’s office wanted off the street. After Lance had left the hospital and had been promoted to Captain, the Arrow asked him the same thing. Roy compiled a list of criminals causing trouble for the citizens of the Glades and Dig, Felicity and Oliver had rounded out the list with their own research into Starling’s seedy underbelly. Marking the names of this new list had proved more satisfying than the names he’d crossed out in his dad’s notebook. He finally felt like he was making a difference for the better.

Felicity was gathering her things and Oliver took a moment to watch her. She was wearing a brightly colored sundress and even her ponytail seemed to be happy as it swung back and forth, “Heading to work?”

Even her crappy job at Tech Village was unable to wipe the green from her face, “I’ve got the early shift today.”

He watched her heading towards the door when something caught his eye, “What’s this?”

She followed him to his workbench, “It’s a fern.”

“I can see that it’s a fern,” he said with what he knew was a silly grin. “Why is it here?”

“If you’re living down here, I thought the place could use with a little sprucing,” Felicity said flirtatiously. “Ferns thrive in low light.”

Oliver’s cell beeped on the table and he picked it up, “Another message from Thea. I wish she’d send me a picture.”

“Where is she now?” Felicity asked as she looked over his arm.

“Positano.” He could feel Dig and Roy watching them with matching smirks, but he didn’t care, “Are we still on for later?”

“Of course.” She cupped his face between her hands, “I’m going to turn you into a corporate master of the universe. The board won’t know what hit them.”

Oliver watched her walk away. As she approached the stairs, she looked over her shoulder at him and smiled. He couldn’t stop a huge smile from spreading across his face and could feel the tips of his ears turning pink. He knew he was being ridiculous and that he needed to tell Felicity how he felt about her before he embarrassed himself any further.

“I’m out of here too,” Roy said gruffly.

“You all right?” Oliver asked his protégé with concern.

“Just tired. I haven’t been sleeping,” Roy said with a shrug.

Oliver extended his hand to Roy, “Nice work out there tonight.”

Roy grinned, “Thanks.”

“Get some sleep,” Oliver called after Roy’s retreating back.

.--- --- .... -. -.. .. --. --. .-.. .

Dig was putting his gun away, when Oliver approached him. “Heading out?” his partner asked.

“Yeah, Lyla has me assembling a bassinet, from hell. We have a doctor’s appointment later today,” Dig said as he closed the drawer to their gun cabinet.

“Speaking of baby,” Oliver said with a big grin, “I have something for her.” Oliver slid a small box towards Dig.

Dig lifted a delicate silver chain with a star charm. He was touched by Oliver’s generosity, but he was concerned that his friend was spending money he no longer had, “You didn’t have to do this. You can’t afford it.”

“I can’t afford anything,” Oliver said shyly, “but I didn’t buy it. I made it. It’s the one thing I’m good at, arrow heads.”

“It’s beautiful, thank you man,” Dig said sincerely.

“I’m happy for you and Lyla,” Oliver played with an arrow that was left on the worktable.

“You can be happy too,” Dig pushed his friend.

Oliver laughed, “In case you haven’t noticed, I’m not a billionaire anymore. What does a broke, unemployed, former castaway have to offer anyone?”

“I don’t think Felicity cares about any of that,” Dig said trying to keep a straight face. Oliver’s eyes shot up in surprise. It was all Dig could do not to laugh at his friend. If Oliver thought he’d been successful at hiding his feelings he was a bigger lovesick fool than Dig had realized.

“There is nothing going on between Felicity and me,” Oliver said like he almost believed what he was saying.

“Come on, man, you love her. You even said so,” Dig reminded his partner.

Oliver grinned and shook his head, “I said that to fool Slade.”

“The only one you’re fooling is yourself,” Dig wished he could shake his friend. Oliver had come so far out of the darkness that he’d condemned himself to after Lian Yu that he only needed to take a few more steps into the daylight before he could finally embrace the life he deserved.

“It’s not the right time. I have nothing to offer her,” Oliver said sadly.

Dig said a silent prayer for patience. He reminded himself that it wasn’t that long ago when he was just like Oliver and afraid to risk his heart again, “Things are never going to be better than they are right now. The streets are quiet. You’re about to get your company back. If you wait much longer, you’ll lose your opportunity.” Dig clapped his hand on Oliver’s shoulder, “Think about it.”

 

ldl

Laurel stepped into the warm morning sun and watched with satisfaction as Vincent Steelgrave was loaded into the prison van heading for Iron Heights. Her collaboration with Oliver and his team had been a fruitful one and she could barely keep up with her caseload. The streets of Starling City were safer than at any point in her lifetime.

“Not that I don’t love watching the bad guys go to jail, but is that,” he pointed to the prison van, “the reason you brought me here?” Oliver teased her.

She smiled, “Did you ever think we’d be partners again?”

Oliver laughed, “Honestly, no.”

“You catch ‘em, I cook ‘em,” she said before she realized anyone could be listening to them. “Did I say that too loud.”

Oliver placed a gentle hand on her shoulder, “No, you’re fine.”

“I wanted you to see this,” she pointed towards her dad who was standing in front of a podium waiting to give a press conference.

Captain Lance stepped up to the microphone and addressed the assembled press, “Two years ago a task force was created to pursue and capture the vigilante known as the Arrow. Five months ago, this city was under attack and the Arrow stepped up and helped save this city. Now, vigilantism, in any form will never be tolerated, but nor will this police force dedicate any more resources to the capture of the Arrow. As of today, I’m disbanding the vigilante task force.”

Laurel grinned at the stunned look on Oliver’s face. He shook his head like he was waking from a dream. “Thank you,” he said, barely above a whisper.

“You’re welcome,” she squeezed his hand. “I’ll see you later, I’m late to cook up another one.”

She wasn’t paying attention as she turned back towards the courthouse and she collided with someone, “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be,” Bill Perkins said with a huge smile, “you can crash into me any time.”

“What are you doing here?” Laurel was more than a little flustered and was mortified by the stupidity of her question, “You have court, obviously.” They resumed walking towards the entrance.

“Yes, I have an arraignment today for someone who was picked up by the Arrow,” Bill said with disdain.

“You don’t like the Arrow?” Laurel asked. “You’re in the minority. He’s a hero to the people of Starling.”

“He’s a criminal who behaves like he’s above the law. We have laws for reasons and when we allow one man in a mask to subvert our legal system we are undermining the very foundation of our country. Is evidence found without a warrant admissible? Is the Arrow a private citizen or an agent of the police? Based on your dad’s press conference, I don’t think it will be all that hard to convince a judge that the Arrow is a member of the SCPD. Everyone also seems to be forgetting that he’s wanted on twelve counts of first degree murder.”

Laurel sighed. She agreed with everything Bill was telling her. She believed absolutely in the law, but she’d come to see that sometimes the law fails to protect the people it should be serving. Oliver had killed twelve people and she was still trying to reconcile her feelings on the subject, but after Tommy died, Oliver had changed. He was no longer an indiscriminate killer. He was striving to make Starling a better place and he was succeeding. She smiled at Bill, “The law doesn’t permit shades of grey, but I think you’ll find that the people of Starling are comfortable with the grey when it comes to the Arrow.”

“Is this going to be a problem for us?” Bill asked with concern. “Are we still on for dinner?”

She smiled, “I still would love to get dinner with you if you still want to.”

He breathed a sigh of relief, “Yes.”

“Great, I’ll see you tonight at seven,” Laurel said with a bounce in her step.

 

VVVVV

“Hey, hey,” Oliver called out as he ran to catch up with Felicity. After his talk with Dig and hearing that the vigilante task force had been disbanded, he’d finally made up his mind to ask Felicity out.

“Hey,” Felicity said with a smile.

“How was work?” he asked wondering if he sounded as nervous as he felt.

“Suffice it to say that it was a soul-crushing exercise that at least comes with health and dental. If I wasn’t motivated to help you get your company back before now, I definitely am now,” she said with a teasing grin. “You may not have all the credentials needed to be CEO, but you’ve been working hard. You have heart,” she patted his chest, “and the board will see that.”

Oliver could still feel the heat of her hand on his chest. He wanted to grab it back and never let go. She was about to walk up the steps to Verdant, but he didn’t want to ask her out in the darkness of the basement. He wanted to ask her in the sunlight, “Felicity.”

She turned and smiled expectantly, “Yeah.”

“Do you want to go to dinner with me?” he asked nervously.

“Oliver, I’m trying to be serious here. We have a few more hours of prep for tomorrow’s meeting and I got a line on one of Steelgrave’s distributors, so you’ll be suiting up. We don’t have time for procrastination.”

Oliver knew he shouldn’t be shocked, but he was. He’d asked her on a date and she didn’t understand his intentions, “I am being serious.”

She turned until she was fully facing him and her eyes narrowed at him, “I don’t mean to read too much into this, so stop me if I’m wrong. Did you just ask me out on a date? Like a date – date?”

Oliver started to panic. He was blowing his chance with her and he hadn’t even taken her out yet, “Su - I mean – it’s just that - the implication with two people going out to dinner is that it’s,”

Felicity laughed good naturedly, “Wow, it is so nice to be on this side of a verbal train wreck. I thought I was the only who spoke in sentence fragments.”

Oliver laughed and then let out a sigh of relief. He reminded himself that it wasn’t that long ago that he was able to use his charm to convince any girl to go out with him. Of course, Felicity Smoak, wasn’t any girl, she was the woman he was in love with. He took a deep breath, “Felicity, will you go out to dinner with me.”

Her head nodded along in encouragement as he got every word out. When he was finished she smiled brightly and simply said, “Yes.”

Oliver knew he was grinning like a fool but he couldn’t bring himself to care. She said, yes. He couldn’t remember being happier or more terrified. In an attempt to remain collected he switched topics, “So we have a line on one of Steelgrave’s men?”

She turned back towards Verdant, “Yeah, there’s some chatter than Kelvin Nico is planning on robbing a liquor store tonight.”

“Do we know which one?” he asked as he held the door open for her.

“If we did, I’d be sending Captain Lance a text so I could spend the rest of my day getting ready for tonight.”

Oliver laughed.

“Frack. Since I said that out loud, you did me tonight, right? I mean if you didn’t that’s fine, I can wait. I’m good at waiting. I guess we both are. I just might be even more nervous than I am right now.”

Oliver laid his hand gently on her shoulder to stop her ramble and he punched in the code for the basement, “Yes, I meant tonight and you don’t need all day to get ready. You’re perfect just like this.”

“Typical,” Felicity said with a grin, “you just take a shower and you’re perfect. This,” she vaguely gestured towards her body, “takes hours.”

He laughed, “I’ll always think you look beautiful.”

Felicity cocked her head to the side and looked at him for a moment before she shook her head and smiled. She began walking down the stairs, “Come on, we’ve got a busy night.”

-+-

It was unseasonably warm for early October and the open windows weren't giving him enough cool air. The Pacific Northwest had its charms but Ray missed New England - he missed Ivy Town and the cool autumn evenings and the leaves that would just be starting to turn vibrant yellows, oranges and reds. Ray closed his eyes and he could almost smell the smoke from Professor Lang's fireplace. It had been two years since he'd moved to Starling City. Once he and Anna had gotten engaged she'd insisted on returning to her hometown to plan the wedding. He knew she wanted to raise their family closer to her mom, Jean, and he had never been able to say no to her. Maybe if he had, she'd still be alive.

He started his Tesla and closed the windows so he could turn on the air conditioning. The cool air blew across his brow. He rested his head against the steering wheel and thought about what Anna would say if she were there with him. He knew, without a doubt, that she'd be laughing at him. Felicity Smoak was a job candidate and there was absolutely no reason for him to be nervous - except everything was riding on her answer. His fingers itched with the need to take action. The parking lot of the Tech Village was still pretty busy and he wanted to make sure he'd have Felicity's undivided attention when he approached her. He'd been sitting in his car for over an hour - watching and waiting - which he was pretty sure made him a stalker. God, he needed Anna. She was the one who reminded him of all the rules that society expected him to follow. He was pretty sure that sitting in a car outside the store where a woman he was interested in hiring worked was something Anna would have had some strongly worded thoughts about. He was sliding into old habits with his latest obsession and, without Anna, there wasn't anyone who was able to temper his more manic tendencies. "Six months," he said aloud. "I promise, Anna. In six months I'll have everything under way and then I'll take a break. I'll go back to teaching for a bit. Maybe I'll get that dog we always talked about." A dog might be good for him - something that would require his attention and depend on him. He couldn't fall into his obsession if he had a dog that relied on him to feed it and walk it. Yes, a dog was exactly what he needed - but not before he got Felicity Smoak to say yes.

He turned off the car and made his way into the store. He casually perused the shelves as he scanned the floor for Felicity. He heard her before he saw her. She was behind a counter trying to explain to a pimply teenaged boy why the graphic card driver he was purchasing was an overpriced piece of garbage. Ray couldn't help but smile as he watched a sales associate who worked on commission try to down sell a customer. She was right, the driver the kid was purchasing wasn't worth even a quarter of the price he was about to pay. The kid had a patronizing smirk on his face as he handed a credit card to Felicity and told her to ring up his over-priced selection.

Ray waited for Felicity to finish with her customer before he approached her. He took a deep breath to calm his nerves, “Hi.”

Felicity looked at him expectantly and when he didn’t say anything she said, “May I help you with something.”

“Oh,” he smiled nervously, “right, I said something.” He looked at her name tag, “You’re Felicity, Felicity Smoak?”

The smile fell from her face as she eyed him suspiciously. She removed her cell from the back pocket of her khakis and had her thumb poised over it, “How do you know who I am?”

He raised his hands in silent apology. She was clearly a little freaked out by his approach. “I’m Ray Palmer,” he held out his hand.

Felicity let out a sigh of relief, “I’m sorry, Mr. Palmer. I didn’t recognize you.” She turned bright pink and became a little flustered, “I mean, I should’ve totally recognized you. You’re you – Ray Palmer – and I just never imagined that I’d ever run into you at Tech Village. What could the CEO of Palmer Tech possibly want to buy at Tech Village? You probably invented half of the things in here.”

“Actually, I didn’t come in here to buy a thing. I want to buy you,” he said with a huge grin.

Felicity took a step back from the counter, “Excuse me?”

Ray replayed what he just said over in his mind and had to suppress a groan. If Anna were there she’d be laughing. “Not buy you, buy you, but buy you,” he pointed at her head, “your brain. I want to offer you a job.”

“A job?” Felicity asked with surprise. “I have a job.”

Ray frowned. He never imagined that she would turn him down because she liked her current employment, “I’m sorry, you want to work here?”

Felicity closed her eyes and mumbled something he couldn’t understand. She took a deep breath and opened her eyes, “God help me, I’m not looking for another job.”

“I don’t understand,” Ray really didn’t. “I taught at Ivy University and I’ve read everything you wrote while you were at MIT. You’re brilliant. Why are you wasting your talent at a dead end job? Come work with me. We can do great things together.”

“I’m flattered, really, I am,” Felicity looked disappointed, “but now isn’t the right time for me. I have other commitments.”

Ray pulled his business card out of his wallet. He pulled the blue pen from behind Felicity’s ear and wrote his cell on the back of his card. He slid the card across the counter towards her, “When you change your mind, call me.”

Felicity picked up his card and her eyes went wide at the salary he was offering. She swallowed audibly, “You seem pretty confident that I’ll change my mind for this number.”

He shook his head. He’d done a lot of research on Felicity and she wasn’t someone to make a decision based solely on money, “No, I think you’ll change your mind for the type of work I’ll be asking you to do.” He started to back away from, “You, Felicity Smoak, and I are going to do great things together. I know it.”

 

01101100 01101001 01100111 01101000 01110100 00001010

Felicity tapped her pen nervously against the counter. Of all the nights to be called into work on an emergency, this night was completely inconvenient. The team was hunting down Kelvin Nico, which would be a lot easier to do if she wasn’t standing in front of a cash register. She also couldn’t stop thinking about Ray Palmer’s job offer. Working for Palmer Tech would be amazing, but she would never walk away from Oliver and his bid to take over Queen Consolidated. There was also the minor issue of needing to get ready for a date with Oliver and the fact that she had no idea where they were going or what she should wear. She was still kind of floating since he asked her out, which made her feel silly. It was only Oliver, after all. She’s spent the whole summer thinking he was about to be honest about how he felt and then she resigned herself that he would never ask her out. Now that he finally did, it felt like everything was riding on this date. He was her best friend and partner and if the date went well – well, she couldn’t really let herself think about that, but if the date went badly – they could lose one another and for Felicity, that was truly unthinkable.

Her team phone chimed in her ear and she looked at the long line of customers at the register and gave them a tight smile, “I can’t talk right now. I’m at work.” She held up a finger towards the customers, “Could I ask you guys to wait for just one moment?” She went around the corner at a run, “Someone’s calling with tech support.”

Felicity sprinted into the back room and logged onto the computer she’d set up with a connection to the lair, “You are so going to get me incredibly fired, again.” She brought up the city’s database, “I’ve hacked into the city’s network and I’m running facial recognition, now.”

“Do you like Italian?” Oliver asked.

It took a second for Felicity’s brain to process what he was asking since she’d been expecting a question about their suspect, “What?”

“For tonight,” he said over the roar of his Ducati. “You like Italian, right? Everyone likes Italian.”

“Oliver,” she said as she looked over her shoulder at the line of customers, “you’re in the middle of a high speed chase.”

“I’m multi-tasking,” he informed her good naturedly.

Before she could respond, her facial recognition software found Nico, “I got him. He’s in the sewer. I’m picking up his cell phone underneath. He’s at the corner of Grand and Ames.” She relaxed at having finished her part of the pursuit and smiled, “And yes, I love Italian.” A new blip on her map of the city drew her attention, “Detective Lance – Captain Lance – is also in pursuit.” She turned off her computer, “You are welcome. I have to go.”

Felicity sprinted back to her cash register and smiled apologetically at her customers. She was barely aware of what was happening around her as she counted down the minutes until she was going to be on her date with Oliver.

 

VVVVV

Oliver really hated sewers. He had a date with Felicity and no time to go back to the lair to take a shower to wash the stink of the city off of himself. He wished the criminals of Starling would just stop running when he was in pursuit. They should’ve learned by now that he always got his man. There was no where they could run where he wouldn’t find them. Surrendering would be so much easier on all of them.

His thoughts of showering were interrupted when he came around the corner in time to see Lance clock Kelvin Nico on the side of the head with a large flash light. Nico turned to get away and ran straight into Oliver and his fist. Nico grabbed onto Oliver as he lost consciousness. Oliver smiled to himself as he lowered Nico to the ground - he might actually be on time for his date. He stepped over Nico’s unconscious body and cautiously approached Lance who was taking a pill from a medicine bottle. He wanted to ask him if he was all right, but decided the Captain would prefer not to acknowledge his medical condition, “Detective – thank you.”

Lance practically rolled his eyes, “You had it handled.”

As the words had left his mouth, Oliver knew what he was thanking Lance for more than just having his back in the sewer, “For what you said today.”

Lance grimaced in what Oliver suspected was a smile, “I wish I could do more.”

“You’ve already done more than enough.” Oliver turned to go. Felicity was waiting for him and he didn’t want to be any later than he had to be, “I’ve got to go. Some place I have to be.”

“You got a hot date or something?” Lance called out after him.

Oliver grinned as he realized that he finally did.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading. All comments and kudos are welcomed and appreciated.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading. All comments and kudos are welcomed and appreciated.
> 
> I know this was a short chapter, but I promise, chapter 2 is a long one and we will jump to the present and catch up with our Starling City Heroes.


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